A woman was left seriously shaken after she had a creepy encounter with a man near one of the capital's busiest walking trails.

The walker, who didn't want to be named, said she saw a sinister-looking man follow her with the zip of his trousers down.

The terrifying incident happened near the Martello Tower - a hugely popular hiking trail.

Explaining what happened, the woman told the Northside People: "Just before the junction in the path where you can choose the cliff path or the hill path, a man appeared, coming down from the hill, walking towards me.

"Instantly I knew something wasn’t right. He changed his gait and slowed down to size me up. Aware I was in a potentially dangerous situation, I squared my shoulders, walked tall and locked eyes with him. I clocked him for about six seconds before he passed me.

"It was in this time that I noticed his fly was down and against his dark jeans I could tell he was wearing no underwear. I have 20/20 vision and it was still daylight so the visibility was good. His behaviour was not that of a flasher but a sexual predator - he was trying to intimidate me and gauge my vulnerability.

“He walked past me and continued on towards the road. After 10 yards I looked back - he had stopped in his tracks and had turned to watch me. He was now in between me and the road, blocking my escape.